Deregistration Of Trusts
Has your Trust become obsolete?
Have the Trust's objectives been fulfilled?
Has your Trust been terminated by operation of law?
A Trust can be created either in terms of a will, alternatively, during the lifetime of the founding Trustee, and is registered at the Master's office in which the majority of the Trust's property is situated.
As a result, and to keep checks and balances in place, a Trust would have to be deregistered at the Masters office in which it was registered. The deregistration of a Trust occurs as an administrative task and is not regulated by legislation.
In order for a Trust to be deregistered, the following documents, inter alia, would need to be submitted to the Masters office:
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The original Letter(s) of Authority;
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The Trust Bank statement(s) reflecting a Nil balance on the final statement;
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Proof that the beneficiaries have received their benefits;
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Any outstanding amounts owed by the Trust would need to be settled in full;
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The reason behind the Trust's closure, ie. the purpose of the Trust has been fulfilled or the Trust has remained dormant; and
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A Resolution by the Trustees, resolving that all of the provisions of the Trust have been completed and by mutual resolution, should there be more than one trustee, the Trust can be deregistered.
Once the required and requested documents have been provided to the Master, and the Master is satisfied that all of the Trust's obligations have been fulfilled, the Master shall proceed to close the Trust and further advise the Trustees to ensure that all of the Trust's documents are stored safely.
Mayuri Maharajh